The prior art is fairly well documented with examples of vehicle seat folding (dumping) and tumbling assemblies. As is known, a desirable feature of rear row mounted seat assemblies is the ability to sequentially dump a pivotal seatback against a floor supported seat bottom, following which the sandwiched back and bottom are released from one or more striker locations associated with the vehicle floor and permitted to forwardly rotate together to a tumble location, whereby the vehicle interior space formally occupied by the seat in the prior use position is now available for use as storage.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,910,739, issued to Grable et al., discloses a recliner mechanism for use with a vehicle seat having bottom and a pivotally secured back. A release mechanism is operably engaged to the back and includes an actuating handle extending from the bottom. A plate is secured to the back at a first location and pivotable along with the back about an axis defined at a second location, an arcuate exterior surface defined by the plate exhibiting a recessed detent. A floor release lever is secured to the bottom proximate the plate and is pivotally associated with the release mechanism by a cable extending to a floor latch mechanism associated with the vehicle. A male detent is pivotally secured to the seat bottom in inter-disposed fashion between the floor release lever and the plate. Upon the release mechanism rotating the floor release lever, and the cable causing the seat bottom to disengage from the floor latch mechanism, the male detent is influenced by the release lever in a first direction to seat against the recessed detent location of the plate and to prevent a forwardly pivoted seat back from being rotated in a reverse direction. Upon the seat bottom further being rotated back into engagement with the floor latch mechanism, the male detent is influenced by release lever in a second direction to permit the seat back to be pivoted in the reverse direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,222,907, issued to Lutzka et al., teaches a release latch for use with a vehicle seat. A latch plate is rotatably secured to the seat and engages a floor-mounted striker. A cam is rotatably secured to the seat and defines a shoulder biasingly seating against a support surface of the latch plate. A lever actuates the cam away from the support surface. A coil spring extends between the cam and a location of the latch plate offset from its pivot point. Forward pivoting of the seat occurs upon the shoulder separating from the support surface, the coil spring causing the latch plate to further rotate in a disengaging direction relative to the striker and upon the coil spring exceeding an over center position relative to the pivot point of rotation of the latch plate.
A further example of a seatback assembly incorporating aspects associated with both floor release and seatback latches is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 7,198,316, issued to Lutzka et al., and which teaches a combined seat back release and floor release for use with a vehicle seat. The seat back includes a first mechanism for forwardly rotating a seat back relative to a seat bottom. The floor release is actuated by the seat back by virtue of a linearly translatable cable extending therebetween. The cable acts upon a floor release lever, which is rotatably slaved to a pair of cam elements. A latch plate is rotatably secured to the seat and engages a floor-mounted striker. Shoulder portions associated with the cams define primary and secondary abutment surfaces acting against the support surface of the latch plate. The lever actuates the cams away from the support surface in response to the actuation of the cable from the seatback mechanism. Forward pivoting of the seat occurs upon the cam shoulders separating from the latch plate support surface, a coil spring causing the latch plate to further rotate in a disengaging direction relative to the striker and upon the coil spring exceeding an over center portion relative to the pivot point of rotation of the latch plate.